I just got back from the range after shooting my new Olympic Arms AR-15, and experienced the most horrific jam that I have ever had.
After shooting about 50 rounds of factory loads without a hitch (UMC 55gr FMJ) I then progressed to a batch of 62gr reloads that I had lying around. They were loaded with a fairly stiff charge of W748 in Federal, Winchester and PMC once fired cases.
After firing about 30 or so rounds of this, the bolt locked back half way on the fifth shot of my magazine and was stuck. REALLY stuck. I took a wooden block and gently tapped the charging handle back as far as I could, (until the empty brass fell out) but the bolt still was jammed. I tried taking the gun apart, but with the bolt stuck halfway down the buffer tube it wasn't going to happen.
I was then that I noticed the fired cases from the reloads; most of them looked fine, but several of them were missing their primers. They were all Federal cases, and I remembered when I loaded them that the primer pockets seemed kind of loose compared to other types of brass. (I have found this to be the case with Federal brass in general - looser primer pockets than other brands.)
To make a long story short, I took the rifle home and managed to get the bolt closed by gently pulling on it with a brass tap, then managed to take the gun apart. The culprit was a spent primer that had lodged in the bolt and had prevented it from cycling. I took it out and everything else seemed fine, especially after giving the gun a good cleaning.
It looks like I will be using factory ammo only for a while with this gun until I sort out the reloading problem. Has anyone else had this type of experience, especially with Federal brass? I have fired several thousand rounds of various reloads out of my ARs and Mini-14's in the past with nary a problem, and of almost 800 rounds of these particular handloads, I've fired about 1/2 of them out of my Savage bolt action rifle with no problems and no excess pressure signs. What gives?
After shooting about 50 rounds of factory loads without a hitch (UMC 55gr FMJ) I then progressed to a batch of 62gr reloads that I had lying around. They were loaded with a fairly stiff charge of W748 in Federal, Winchester and PMC once fired cases.
After firing about 30 or so rounds of this, the bolt locked back half way on the fifth shot of my magazine and was stuck. REALLY stuck. I took a wooden block and gently tapped the charging handle back as far as I could, (until the empty brass fell out) but the bolt still was jammed. I tried taking the gun apart, but with the bolt stuck halfway down the buffer tube it wasn't going to happen.
I was then that I noticed the fired cases from the reloads; most of them looked fine, but several of them were missing their primers. They were all Federal cases, and I remembered when I loaded them that the primer pockets seemed kind of loose compared to other types of brass. (I have found this to be the case with Federal brass in general - looser primer pockets than other brands.)
To make a long story short, I took the rifle home and managed to get the bolt closed by gently pulling on it with a brass tap, then managed to take the gun apart. The culprit was a spent primer that had lodged in the bolt and had prevented it from cycling. I took it out and everything else seemed fine, especially after giving the gun a good cleaning.
It looks like I will be using factory ammo only for a while with this gun until I sort out the reloading problem. Has anyone else had this type of experience, especially with Federal brass? I have fired several thousand rounds of various reloads out of my ARs and Mini-14's in the past with nary a problem, and of almost 800 rounds of these particular handloads, I've fired about 1/2 of them out of my Savage bolt action rifle with no problems and no excess pressure signs. What gives?
